Gen Z has been called many things. "The strawberry generation,” for example, because young people are often accused of being sensitive and easily bruised. However, the same accusations were made against Millennials one generation before. And before that, even Baby Boomers themselves were ridiculed for the same thing.
In their 2019 paper published in Science Advances, researcher John Protzko and psychologist Jonathan Schooler call this the "kids these days” effect. They noted that complaints have been made about young people all throughout time.
The persistence of these complaints suggests they are "neither accurate nor due to the idiosyncrasies of a particular culture or time — but rather represent a pervasive illusion of humanity.”
Battle of the ages
Now, the greatest degree of intergenerational animosity, as found in an analysis by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, lies between Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), largely skipping over Generation X who were born in between.
Their study summarised the concerns: "Baby Boomers primarily fear that Millennials threaten traditional American values (symbolic threat) while Millennials primarily fear that Baby Boomers’ delayed transmission of power hampers their life prospects (realistic threat).”
Millenials have been depicted as "lazy, entitled, disrespectful, and responsible for the perceived decay [of cultural values].” Boomers, conversely, are accused of being "greedy, complacent, wasteful, and taking advantage of... resources at the expense of other generations.”
Interestingly, however, Boomers have faced the same criticisms they currently level towards the younger generation. The term "generation gap” was in fact first used to describe young Boomers themselves in 1967.
The term, introduced by John Poppy in Look magazine, was meant to describe a difference in outlook and clash of ideals, mostly between Americans of different age groups.
The Greatest Generation, born before 1928, lived through and won WWII. The Silent generation (1928-1945) were "[children] of the Great Depression and World War II, [hence] their "Silent” label refers to their image as conformist and civic-minded,” according to the Pew Research Centre.
Baby Boomers, in sudden contrast, were seen as radical, anti-government, and anti-war. "[T]he end of the Vietnam War and the Watergate affair... was a time in U.S. history that coincided with a sharp drop in public trust in government.”
How social changes fueled the fires
The 1960s were also a time of cultural revolution. Music, social views and popular culture became much less traditional. For example, "[s]oap operas were much more progressive than they were given credit for in their era,” Professor Tara McPherson told the Smithsonian magazine. "I’m certain the first interracial kiss my grandmother ever saw... was on a soap opera.”
There was also a technological boom. Washing machines, vacuum cleaners and televisions, previously seen as luxuries, became home fixtures in Western homes around the 1950s. Unemployment dropped massively in the US, leading to economic prosperity vastly different from the uncertainty and danger of WWII and the Great Depression.
As one might expect, Boomers were accused by their elders as being lazy, entitled, and disrespectful. Life expectency doubled in the West. The world seemed too easy due to the sudden technological advancements, and the youth allegedly did not appreciate it; Boomers in the 60s spread counter-culture. They protested racism, railed against war, and fought for women’s rights.
Their elders called this a decline in morals. Psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, in 1954, blamed comic books for moral decline and perceived juvenile delinquency. His book, The Seduction of The Innocent, has since been widely criticised and discredited as a symptom of moral panic.
Then, in the early 2000s, all of this happened again. Young people became accustomed to having the power of the internet in their pockets. Life expectancy increased again, except this time progress was made all over the world.
What goes around comes around
Milennials and Zoomers now push for racial and gender equality, protest war, and care about climate change. And again, they are faced with the same stereotypes of entitlement, laziness, and disrespect.
Even the moral panic has not changed. Instead of comic books, this time video games are to blame. And, similarly, the American Psychological Association, despite years of study, has found that while violent games could cause aggressive feelings, there is "[s]cant evidence... [for] any causal or correlational connection between playing violent video games and actually committing violent activities.”
It seems, then, that intergenerational conflict is less about Us versus Them, and more a reflection of how quickly times can change. Young people go along with this change and their elders are keen to point out its flaws. This did not start with us. It did not even start in the 60s; perhaps these sentiments are as old as humanity itself.
In 1925, the Hull Daily Mail published The Conduct of Young People, which claimed "as never before, an attitude on the part of young folk which is best described as grossly thoughtless, rude, and utterly selfish.”
In actuality, intergenerational conflict is nothing new. Older adults have always made complaints about younger ones, and young adults have always disregarded them. The ‘kids these days effect’ may persist for as long as we do. Looked at through a broader lens, the animosity between generations now is simply what it has always been — a sign of societal change, and a normal part of humanity’s transition through time.
In their 2019 paper published in Science Advances, researcher John Protzko and psychologist Jonathan Schooler call this the "kids these days” effect. They noted that complaints have been made about young people all throughout time.
The persistence of these complaints suggests they are "neither accurate nor due to the idiosyncrasies of a particular culture or time — but rather represent a pervasive illusion of humanity.”
Battle of the ages
Now, the greatest degree of intergenerational animosity, as found in an analysis by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, lies between Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), largely skipping over Generation X who were born in between.
Their study summarised the concerns: "Baby Boomers primarily fear that Millennials threaten traditional American values (symbolic threat) while Millennials primarily fear that Baby Boomers’ delayed transmission of power hampers their life prospects (realistic threat).”
Millenials have been depicted as "lazy, entitled, disrespectful, and responsible for the perceived decay [of cultural values].” Boomers, conversely, are accused of being "greedy, complacent, wasteful, and taking advantage of... resources at the expense of other generations.”
Interestingly, however, Boomers have faced the same criticisms they currently level towards the younger generation. The term "generation gap” was in fact first used to describe young Boomers themselves in 1967.
The term, introduced by John Poppy in Look magazine, was meant to describe a difference in outlook and clash of ideals, mostly between Americans of different age groups.
The Greatest Generation, born before 1928, lived through and won WWII. The Silent generation (1928-1945) were "[children] of the Great Depression and World War II, [hence] their "Silent” label refers to their image as conformist and civic-minded,” according to the Pew Research Centre.
Baby Boomers, in sudden contrast, were seen as radical, anti-government, and anti-war. "[T]he end of the Vietnam War and the Watergate affair... was a time in U.S. history that coincided with a sharp drop in public trust in government.”
How social changes fueled the fires
The 1960s were also a time of cultural revolution. Music, social views and popular culture became much less traditional. For example, "[s]oap operas were much more progressive than they were given credit for in their era,” Professor Tara McPherson told the Smithsonian magazine. "I’m certain the first interracial kiss my grandmother ever saw... was on a soap opera.”
There was also a technological boom. Washing machines, vacuum cleaners and televisions, previously seen as luxuries, became home fixtures in Western homes around the 1950s. Unemployment dropped massively in the US, leading to economic prosperity vastly different from the uncertainty and danger of WWII and the Great Depression.
As one might expect, Boomers were accused by their elders as being lazy, entitled, and disrespectful. Life expectency doubled in the West. The world seemed too easy due to the sudden technological advancements, and the youth allegedly did not appreciate it; Boomers in the 60s spread counter-culture. They protested racism, railed against war, and fought for women’s rights.
Their elders called this a decline in morals. Psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, in 1954, blamed comic books for moral decline and perceived juvenile delinquency. His book, The Seduction of The Innocent, has since been widely criticised and discredited as a symptom of moral panic.
Then, in the early 2000s, all of this happened again. Young people became accustomed to having the power of the internet in their pockets. Life expectancy increased again, except this time progress was made all over the world.
What goes around comes around
Milennials and Zoomers now push for racial and gender equality, protest war, and care about climate change. And again, they are faced with the same stereotypes of entitlement, laziness, and disrespect.
Even the moral panic has not changed. Instead of comic books, this time video games are to blame. And, similarly, the American Psychological Association, despite years of study, has found that while violent games could cause aggressive feelings, there is "[s]cant evidence... [for] any causal or correlational connection between playing violent video games and actually committing violent activities.”
It seems, then, that intergenerational conflict is less about Us versus Them, and more a reflection of how quickly times can change. Young people go along with this change and their elders are keen to point out its flaws. This did not start with us. It did not even start in the 60s; perhaps these sentiments are as old as humanity itself.
In 1925, the Hull Daily Mail published The Conduct of Young People, which claimed "as never before, an attitude on the part of young folk which is best described as grossly thoughtless, rude, and utterly selfish.”
In actuality, intergenerational conflict is nothing new. Older adults have always made complaints about younger ones, and young adults have always disregarded them. The ‘kids these days effect’ may persist for as long as we do. Looked at through a broader lens, the animosity between generations now is simply what it has always been — a sign of societal change, and a normal part of humanity’s transition through time.